


Garbage Cookies

by sternchencas



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Christmas Eve, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-12
Updated: 2015-12-12
Packaged: 2018-05-06 08:59:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5410838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sternchencas/pseuds/sternchencas
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Both Dean and Castiel aren't very fond of Christmas. They don't even put up Christmas lights, incuring their neighbors disapproval. But when Castiel notices Dean's sadness, he decides to bring a little light in the other man's life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Garbage Cookies

**Author's Note:**

> This story is part of the [Destiel Christmas Mini Bang](http://destielchristmasminibang.tumblr.com/) on tumblr. The prompt was "lights".
> 
> The [gorgeous art](http://julesplentibrokenvcr.tumblr.com/post/135069372672/hi-there-this-is-for-the-dcmb-prompt-lights-my) was made by [Jules](http://julesplentibrokenvcr.tumblr.com/)! I was lucky to be paired with such a great artist. Thank you for making this wonderful piece!
> 
> And thanks to all of you in advance for reading. If you like it, be so kind and let me know :) And give my artist lots of love!

Dean feels like a stalker when he peeks outside the window for the fifths time today. Usually he's a live-and-let-live kind of guy but the next door neighbor moved in three weeks ago and Dean hasn't seen him yet. Dean's been out of town for a week to visit his brother but by now he should have run into the other man. Especially since all his other neighbors seem to have a lot of opinions about 'Mr. Novak'. Dean heard everything about him from 'shy and stuck up' over 'nice and friendly' to 'quite a looker'. At some point Dean couldn't help but become curious. Now he has a garbage bag stashed next to his door just so he can orchestrate an 'accidental' encounter with the new guy.

He gets his chance two hours later when Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Wilson walk past his house during their weekly run, which is more of a walking and talking kind of deal, and they scream a high pitched "Hello, Mr. Novak!" across his neighbors yard. In a second, Dean is on his feet and grabs the garbage bag. He tries his best to appear casual when he walks outside and makes his way to his trash can. After weeks of waiting, he's finally lucky. Novak is busy with shoving some garbage into his own bin when Dean arrives next to him.

Dean's first impression of the guy is pretty positive. He presents himself in ragged jeans, a mismatched sweater, and untied shoe laces. To him the garbage is just a nuisance he has to take care of, and not a nice chore on a long list of things to do in every day life. He couldn't be more different from all the 'we're-so-perfect' neighbors if he tried. Novak's unkempt, dark hair just adds to that picture and the sight forces a smile on Dean's face. Even his voice comes out overly cheery. "Hey, welcome to the neighborhood!"

When Novak looks up, Dean meets an intense stare out of the bluest eyes he has ever seen, a clear question lying in them. Dean understands the confusion and tries to clarify what he means. "I've just came back from visiting my brother and we haven't met yet. I'm Dean, Dean Winchester."

Dean nods to his house behind him and Novak finally catches on. "Oh, nice to meet you. I'm Castiel Novak, but you can call me Cas."

"Nickname basis, huh?" Dean comes closer like he's about to tell Cas a secret and drops his voice. "Good thinking. I guess we should stick together."

Cas furrows his brows, taken aback by Dean's demeanor. But instead of backing away, he comes closer to Dean. "Excuse me?"

"I noticed you don't have any Christmas lights up. Just like me. That's not the best way to make friends around here. Mrs. Jones keeps bringing me cookies just so she can ask me when I'm finally going to put up my lights."

A slight smile appears on Cas' face and he sheepishly studies his trash. Dean follows his gaze to find the remains of crumbled cookies all over it. Cas sighs and looks back up to Dean. "She brings those over almost every day. I can't fathom how I'm supposed to eat such an amount of cookies in the span of so little time."

Dean laughs. "Don't worry about it. Once Christmas Eve is over, she's going to leave you alone. I haven't put up any lights for three years now. I know what I'm talking about."

Cas nods and closes the lid of his garbage can, but his eyes stay on Dean. "Why don't you put up any lights?"

Unprepared for such a question, Dean can't come up with a lie. Instead he just blurts out the truth. "My father made a big deal about the decorations. It often took him hours and my mother always asked him to keep it simple. But when he switched them on, my mom stood in front of our house with the biggest smile on her face. She never said it, but she loved the lights and my dad kept putting them up." Dean swallows hard, not sure how to go on, but he can't stop now. "They died in a plane crash. After that I couldn't bring myself to-"

He doesn't finish the sentence but Cas nods like he knows exactly how Dean feels. "They shouldn't ask you to put them up. It's rude and insensitive."

"Oh, they don't know. I guess they just think I'm a Grinch. You are the first person to ask me why I don't decorate my house." Dean clears his throat, trying his best to get rid of the tension. "And what's your excuse?"

Cas looks back at his house and shrugs. "I actually am a Grinch. I just don't like Christmas."

"Why wouldn't you like Christmas?"

"In my family, Christmas was the time we all came together to fight with each other. I don't think I had happy holidays in my whole life. And now that I'm grown up, I just don't see the appeal."

Dean almost goes into a rant about all the things that are great about Christmas aside from the lights, but he can see Cas' point. He told his brother Sam a lie about how he's going to spend his holidays with a girl, so Sam won't ask him to stay with his family. Around Christmas, Dean just can't think about anything else than their parents and he doesn't want to put this burden on Sam's wife and the kids. Of course that means he has to be alone, and the sudden thought crushes him.

He hurriedly shoves his garbage into the bin and prepares his retreat. "Guess we just stay in the dark then. Could be worse, right? Um, nice meeting you, Cas. I'll just-" He knows he must look like an idiot, but he just turns around on his heels and makes his way back into the house. It wouldn't be the first time he made a bad first impression, so who cares?

 

* * * * * *

 

It's been four days and Cas hasn't seen Dean since their short talk. Still, he can't stop thinking about his neighbor. Cas is good when it comes to judging people from a first impression. Unlike the other people around who just try to force their ideas on everybody with a false smile, Dean has been truly friendly. It pains Cas how this happy person just crumbled when he thought about his parents, and Cas can't forget Dean's words. 'We just stay in the dark.'

That's the reason why he just did the craziest thing. While doing his last Christmas shopping, he stumbled upon some tealights and bought them on a whim. To cheer Dean up, he put them in front of Dean's door, arranged in a circle. In the middle he put a Christmas card with a quote that he likes. His crazy state of mind also made him write a personal note:

 

_"Dear Dean,_

_dare to reach out your hand into the darkness, to pull another hand into the light. ~ Norman B. Rice_

_I don't think we need to stay in the dark. There can be light in the oddest places, you just need to have faith. Merry Christmas!_

_\- The Grinch"_

 

The more he thinks about it, the worse it gets. He keeps looking out of the window, trying to catch a glance at Dean's porch to make sure the lights are still there. If Dean hasn't found them in the next 10 minutes, Cas is going to go over there and take them back. They had one brief conversation over their garbage, for Christ's sake. It's not his right to tell Dean anything.

A few minutes later, he's about to put on his shoes and correct his mistake when the doorbell rings. Cas' insides grow cold, and he tiptoes to the door to peek through the peephole. It's Dean.

Castiel takes a deep breath and opens the door. He wants to smile to appear friendly, but he's too afraid to move any more muscles. "Hello, Dean."

"Heya, Cas! I found your little present and I just wanted to come over real quick and say thank you, and-" Dean has been smiling and his words seem like he prepared what to say, but now he trails off. When he starts over again, his voice sounds softer, way more real. "I can't remember anyone doing something so nice for me, so I just wanted to thank you in person. That's it. I don't want to keep you from your family."

He glances over Cas' shoulder like somebody should be there, and finally Cas gets his voice back. "Oh, don't worry about it. You're welcome. And you're not keeping me from anything, I'm alone."

"Oh." Dean's lip shapes into an O and he lifts his eyebrows in surprise. "But it smells so good here, I thought you might be cooking."

Castiel shakes his head. "I'm an awful cook. I'll heat up some frozen dinner in the microwave later. But I know a little bit about baking, so I made pie." Dean's eyebrows wander even higher and Cas finally manages a smile. "Do you maybe want a slice?"

Dean smiles as well. "Hell yeah, I love pie."

"Okay, come in."

They walk into the kitchen and while Castiel gets a knife to cut the pie, Dean leans over it and sniffs. "I'm more into pecan pie myself, but apple is nice, too."

"It was one way to shut my family up when they were fighting. I guess I have some family tradition after all. I even make it when I'm not with them."

The words came out way more bitterly than Cas intended. He tries to focus on the pie instead, but Dean takes a hold of his hand before he can make the first cut. "Are you actually going to eat frozen dinner on Christmas Eve?"

Castiel has no idea what that has to do with anything, but he nods. "Yes. I told you, I can't cook."

Remembering what he's doing, Dean lets go of Cas' hand and the softness comes back into his voice. "Well, I can. It's just some prime rib and mashed potatoes but I'm used to cook for my brother, so I always end up making too much. We could take that pie, bring it over to my place and eat together. If you want to."

Usually Cas doesn't mind being alone on Christmas Eve. He actually enjoys it compared to being with his family. But Dean looks so hopeful and he didn't make fun of Castiel's lame idea with the lights. It could be fun. "I guess I can't say no to that, can I?"

"No." Dean shakes his head. "I'm not gonna let you have frozen food on Christmas, Grinch or not."

He carefully picks up the pie and moves to the door. "I'll just bring this baby over to my place and you come over whenever you're ready. I gotta check on our food."

Cas feels a little twirl in his stomach. He could argue that he's hungry but it happened exactly when Dean said 'our food'. It sounded nice.

 

* * * * * * 

 

Dean thought about just putting up one plate for himself and drink beer from the bottle. But he's going to have a guest now. He makes sure that the food won't burn and prepares the table, starting with the lights Castiel left for him. He arranges them on one side, puts the plates and glasses on the other, and even digs up some napkins.

For the first time this year he actually feels the Christmas spirit. Seconds later he's humming 'Holly Jolly Christmas', at least until he turns around. When he came in with the pie he left the door ajar for Castiel who's now standing in his kitchen door. He's wearing a horrible red Christmas sweater with reindeers and green mistletoe but somehow manages to makes it look good.

Unlike Dean. He put his apron back on and feels like he's making dinner for his husband who just arrived home from work. The thought renders him speechless and Castiel walks in and holds up a bottle of wine. "I didn't know what you planned on drinking but this one could go well with the food."

After wiping his hands on the apron, Dean grabs the bottle and takes a look at it. "Thank you, that's great. I know nothing about wine."

Cas smiles at him and Dean grins. "But I do have glasses. Over there."

While Dean prepares the food, Castiel follows his instructions to find his way around the kitchen to open the wine. They work so well together that Dean can't stop himself from humming again, but almost stops when he hears Cas quietly singing along. It reminds him of his parents, and he's waiting for the pain of the memory but it doesn't come. There's just warmth and joy. This is nice.

It gets even better when they finally sit at the table, next to the lighted candles. It's quiet at first, but when Castiel praises Dean's food, they get to talk about cooking and Mrs. Jones horrible cookies. At some point they agree to never put up any lights no matter how many cookies they have to throw away. Dean also tells Cas about all the other neighbors he should stay away from.

By the time they have their second glass of wine, Castiel watches Dean with an extra big smile. "This is nice. Maybe Christmas isn't so bad after all."

Dean swallows and puts down the glass. "You don't know the half of it. If I knew, I could have made something better. Next year I'm gonna make you a nice turkey with the best stuffing you have ever eaten, and-"

He stops himself, regretting his eagerness. Of course this is nonsense. So much things can happen in a year. There's no reason why Cas and he should spend their next Christmas together. They might not even live next to each other anymore.

To Dean's surprise, Castiel just nods, still smiling. "I could make pecan pie instead of apple. What do you think?"

Dean grins from one ear to the other, with something warm and fuzzy fluttering in his chest. "I'd love that."


End file.
